Down To The Wire For Retailers

New York - Retailers have
released their final round of holiday promotions as the clock ticks closer to
Christmas.

Best Buy is halfway
through a Santa Sales event running in-store through Friday, in-store and online
through Saturday that includes such deals as a 46-inch Panasonic plasma TV and 50-inch
Insignia plasma both priced at $550, and an Insignia Web-capable Blu-ray Disc player
for $75.

The chain will also
extend store hours on Sunday and will offer free online shipping on hundreds of
thousands of items on Dec. 26-27.

Meanwhile, New York's
J&R Music & Computer World has unleashed a torrent of last-minute
sales, including a 40-inch Toshiba 1080p LCD-TV for $450 and a Panasonic 14.1MP
Lumix digital camera for $170.

Whether it was the sale
or J&R's close proximity to City Hall that lured him, New York Mayor
Michael Bloomberg was among the throng of last-minute shoppers today who crowded
the Lower Manhattan store.